Sobrato looks sharp, but Oak Grove clinches outright league
title with sweep Tuesday
MORGAN HILL — By pushing past Sobrato in straight sets Tuesday, the Oak Grove Eagles followed through like a veteran-heavy — and now championship-winning — squad is expected to this late in the season.
The Bulldogs, on the other hand, didn’t look like a team that has lost nine of its 10 league matches.
If final home games are any mark of a team’s progress, the Sobrato High School club has come a long way since February, when many of its players were introduced to volleyball. They overcame a five-point deficit to pull even, 22-22, during the first set, then battled back from seven points down to make things interesting in Game 2. The Eagles finally showed they are cut above their peers in Game 3, scoring 10 aces to win 25-23, 25-19, 25-9 and clinch the Santa Teresa Division title outright.
Chris Tran led playoff-bound Oak Grove with 10 blocks, six kills and four stuff-blocks, and Bryce Bridge added seven kills and five assists.
“Experience was their biggest advantage,” SHS junior setter Ethan Lines said. “At this point, our mechanics are where they should be. We’re just working on communicating and being on the same page. That just comes with playing together more.”
With that in mind, the senior-less Bulldogs have reason to be excited for 2011. They laid a stable foundation this spring, paying their dues together on the court and putting in quality time at practice.
Losses were expected. The team’s March 3 season opener came a week after the Bulldogs began working with first-year coach Todd Anderson and assistant Mike Nydem.
“We’ll be able to start much earlier next year,” Anderson said. “That’s definitely going to make a difference. We’ve made some huge gains this year, thanks in big part to Mike. Hopefully, we’ll be able to pick up right where we leave off.”
With as many as 10 veterans in the lineup next year, Sobrato’s incoming players should get up to speed quickly.
Two current freshmen collected team highs Tuesday. Defensive specialist Ryan Perez had 11 digs, including four in one rally, and Scott Mercado chipped in five blocks. Junior Sergio Mihai, another newcomer, had five kills to lead SHS.
“They were just playing at a different level tonight,” said junior setter Estevan Santiago, who tallied nine assists, five kills and four blocks. “I’m excited to see how good they are next year.”
The Bulldogs were sharp all around in the opening set, countering Oak Grove’s powerful frontline with sure-handed defense and crafty tips at the net. Sobrato went on a 5-1 scoring run to tie it 22-all and pulled even again two points later when Lines landed a spike at the left sideline.
The Eagles (9-0 league) went ahead on Holland Van’s tip-kill, then won it with an ace by Tran.
“That was one of our best games of the season,” said Lines, who had three of his team-high seven assists in the first set. “I’d say it was a mental loss. We have a tough time picking ourselves up when we make mistakes. By the time we did, we were down by a bunch of points.”
Oak Grove led 14-7 in Game 2 before the Bulldogs found their touch. Sobrato clawed back with scrappy points by Mercado, Mihai and Perez, eventually drawing to within two — 20-18 — when Mercado set Lines for a knifing spike down the middle.
The Eagles scored five of the next six points to go ahead two games to none.
In the third set, Oak Grove put on a show at the service line with eight aces from Darryll Lim and two from Bridge.
“Serves are something we still need to work on,” Anderson said. “Everything else is looking good right now; our passing and sets are good, and our guys are finding the floor better with their spikes. They’ve made tremendous progress.”
Sobrato will get one more shot at victory Thursday at Lincoln.
